God's Goodness

Changes and Opportunities

September 16, 2019 // Esther Filbrun Leave a Comment

Yesterday, I got the news that due to changes where I work, I will only be working one day a week instead of the two I normally do. In effect, that means my hours are halved, which is rather major! I fully support my bosses and agree with their decision—sometimes, no matter how much we’d like things to work one way, they just can’t for a while. Eventually, perhaps, I’ll go back to working two days per week for them again, but only if they need it. Since I am a house helper, ideally the children will get old enough and competent enough eventually to be able to take over my job—so I’d be out of work then, anyway.

We’ll see!

For now, I’m thankful to still have something of a job.

I admit; I was a little disappointed when I got the news (who wouldn’t be?), but in thinking about it, I’ve realized this could be another opportunity for God to show me the next step to take. I’ve always prayed that the Lord would open the doors before me when the right time comes, and when that time comes He would show me what doors are open so I can walk through them. When one opportunity seemed to come to an end, He always has brought another along.

This opportunity for ministry with that family hasn’t fully come to an end yet, so I’m sure He still has work here for me to do. Wherever I am, I want to be able to bless others. To show them the Lord’s goodness, and perhaps be His “hands and feet” for them.

I’m sure that’s the longing of many young women—and if you’re one of them, I’d like to encourage you to keep trusting the Lord! He will bring the right next step to you in His timing. Yes, the in-between might be a little disconcerting, but trust His promises.

I always feel a sort of push-and-pull. I believe it’s necessary to find contentment where we are, but we also aren’t called to just sit and wait for something to drop into our laps. Finding a balance between the two is needed. I’m praying the Lord will show me what I should do with the extra time He’s given me—because He has a plan for that, too. Pray with me, if you think about it! And if you have something I can pray for you for, please comment below or send me an email: esther[at]learningresourcedirectory[dot]com. I’d love to hear from you!

No matter what you’re facing today, keep your eyes on Him. Watch for the open doors.

“For thou art my lamp, O LORD: and the LORD will lighten my darkness.” (II Samuel 22:29)

What challenges are you facing right now?

Tripping: The Nelson Post

July 25, 2019 // Esther Filbrun Leave a Comment

The past few weeks have been busy with multiple trips to different places. I’ve been able to catch up with quite a few different people from different places, which has been extra-special! Isn’t the Lord good to put different ones in our paths?

Two weekends ago, we took a family trip over to the east coast to visit friends at a little church there. It was an encouraging overnight trip; so good to see everyone, even if the visit felt far too short! I loved the view of the Southern Alps on our way back home!

Then, a couple days later, I took two brothers with me up to Nelson. Mom is due in about five weeks, and I wanted to be sure to have a good rocking chair here before the baby comes, hence the need to go and pick one up. I didn’t want to drive something like seven (plus) hours straight, so we arranged to spend the night with friends up there before coming back the next day. It’s been probably six months or so since we last caught up with those friends, so it was pretty special to do that! Other friends from Kaikoura were there as well at the same time, which made it extra-special!

Our friends are living at a Christian campground, so we had a quick tour the next morning before we left. Here is the main community building, with the dining room/lounge on the far left, the (beautifully large!) kitchen near the middle of the building, and a three-bedroom flat on the right wing for families or “camp mums” with their children. The white-roofed building off to the right is the beginning of a long row of cabins, and the fenced-in area holds a massive blow-up pillow for the children to play on!

We also got to explore the massive maze they have set up; I started going through it, but soon everyone else outstripped me, and I decided I would rather do without the mud and be ready to go when they all got out. I was assured that you couldn’t get lost in it!

I was also quite impressed by the long obstacle course that is set up! The apparatus was quite wet when we were there, but the children assured me it was quite fun. One girl said she had gone over it about 50 times! Most of the steps looked difficult enough to me, and for several I wasn’t quite sure what you were supposed to do there—maybe things are taken down over winter?

After exploring the campground, we headed up a short hill and got a look over the landscape. Back in January, I believe, there was a terrible fire that started up in these hills somewhere. It took quite a while for the firefighters to put it out, but the special part was that though the fire was very close, the camp didn’t burn!

This is the fire line. If you follow the valley to the left of the house, you would get to the Christian camp. I’d guess it’s a five-minute walk back to the camp from there, at most. Lots of people were praying for protection of the camp when the fire was going on; this camp has been going for years, and many people have been blessed by it!

According to the report we heard, a firefighter that was working there at the time saw the fire coming—and then it got up to this spot, and stopped. He said he’d never seen anything like it before! The pine plantation there should have burned, but it didn’t. The house in this picture was part of the camp at one point, but isn’t anymore—and it just escaped being burned. God is so good!

After looking at the fire damage, we headed around over the top of the hill, and got a good view of the valley leading up to Nelson. It was a beautiful day to be out sight-seeing!

Beautiful New Zealand! Nelson city is off on the left of this picture, under the hazier part, if I remember correctly.

In all, I thoroughly enjoyed our little trip up there, and loved that we could get a little nature walk in at the same time. Grandma, I wish you could have been there; the birdsong was quite different than we have here, and very pretty!

What places have you been exploring lately? What are you enjoying in God’s creation right now?

He Who Walks With Us

July 8, 2019 // Esther Filbrun Leave a Comment

This morning, I read the story of Jacob, his sons, daughter Dinah, and the men of Shechem. It’s not a nice story at all, but what blessed me out of that was the fact that though wrong was done by both parties, God still had a plan.

In this case, He ended up protecting Jacob’s family, and this circumstance also caused Jacob to turn to the Lord more—in the next chapter, we read that Jacob told his family, “let’s go to Bethel, so I can make an altar to the God who answers me when I am in trouble and has been with me wherever I’ve gone.” (Genesis 35:3, my paraphrase)

The Canaanites around them could have easily made war against Jacob for destroying a city, but they didn’t. A “terror from God” kept them quiet.

There is so much trouble around us these days—but here is the One we must turn to. Only the Lord can answer and help us in the day of trouble. Only He possesses the wisdom and help we need. Only He walks with us wherever we go.

Look to Jesus!

Slowing Down to Listen

June 17, 2019 // Esther Filbrun Leave a Comment

Today, I’d like to share a few quotes I’ve found in a book called Here, Now by Kate Merrick. I’m hoping I can share a review of this book on my book reviews site soon, but it’s not written yet. I did get this book as a for-review copy, so I will be reviewing it soon on Goodreads and Amazon.

Note: Some links in this post are affiliate links. Your purchase through these links help support this blog at no extra expense to you. Thank you!

I finished Here, Now last week, and highly recommend it. Lots of great thoughts here! I’d almost like to have a physical copy of this, just so I can see how it all fits together on paper. It’s good. And yes, these aren’t all the quotes I have, but I’ve managed to pare it down to five. I hope at least one blesses you!

“Slow down, take in your life, find the beauty, and see God moving all around you—it’s worth it.” —Jamie Ivey

“God is willing to speak to and lead us more than we are willing to be spoken to and led.” —Kate Merrick

“Prayer is the beginning of presence, the beginning of peace, the beginning of contentment.” —Kate Merrick

“We practice presence by asking him to show us just how near he really is, how he sees us, and believing what he says rather than our own feelings, impressions, or emotions.” —Kate Merrick

“Today is all you have; it’s all anyone has.” —A woman who lost her son to leukemia

If you would like to have a little more encouragement from Kate Merrick herself, I’d recommend you check out the book these quotes came from: Here, Now.

How has God been speaking to you this week?

Joy

June 10, 2019 // Esther Filbrun Leave a Comment

Contentment. Happiness. Hope. Peace. Thankfulness.

I believe they all have one thing in common—joy.

I could live in a sea of “woe is me” forever, and never find a bottom.

But in Christ, there is a bottom. I have the choice: Focus on my imperfections, or on His perfection. Bemoan my predicament, or praise Him for His hand in it all. Trust my own work to get me there, or trust in His.

It’s all that simple—and that hard!

But when I remind myself of God’s attributes, I find a solid rock to stand on.

He is love—and He loves me. He is faithful. His word is true. He is the great shepherd. He is our refuge. He is our strength. Perhaps best of all, He is my Father. He’s adopted me. Me! and you! Glory!

When I’m tempted to doubt, this is the space I want to come back to. Reviewing these truths refreshes my soul, and gives me that much-needed position of joy. Because on my own, I am incompetent, but in Him, I am complete.

And you are too!

What has the Lord spoken to you about today?

Blessings This Week

April 26, 2019 // Esther Filbrun Leave a Comment

I have so many thoughts that I could jot down and share with you. Today, I thought I’d give you a random collection, and perhaps something will inspire you where you are to keep going on for the Lord more!

1) We’ve just come through the Easter season, and oh, what a refreshing reset that has been for me personally! We’ve been attending an Easter conference the last five years as a family (hosted by a church group we’ve grown to love quite dearly), and this year we were blessed to go down there and worship with them again. It’s so good to remember what the Lord has done for us. To have rich fellowship. To laugh and sing and share together. What a blessing!

2) I’ve been listening to a lot of songs from past years of A Cappella Gospel Sing lately, and it’s struck me over and over again how much we have to thank the Lord for! It’s amazing how songs can lift our spirits and refocus us on what matters most! If you need a bit of encouragement, I’d recommend reading chapters from the Psalms or picking up a hymnal and studying the words to the old hymns. There’s so much depth there.

3) This week has been a quieter week at home, so I’ve been able to do a bit of sewing and scrapbooking—two things I love doing, but rarely make time for. It’s so refreshing to be able to sit down and see something come together from a pile of mismatched pieces, or look through pictures and remember how the Lord has been faithful in the past. God is so good!

4) On our five-hour trip home from Easter conference, those of us in the van listened to probably 3-4 hours’ worth of a dramatized version of Christiana (Pilgrim’s Progress, part 2). I’m very familiar with the story, as I virtually lived on recorded stories when I was younger, but it’s probably been a good 4-6 years since I last listened to the story. It’s so good to be reminded of how the Lord uses different circumstances to bring us closer to Himself, that He is well able to take care of us, and He is the One we need to constantly focus on if we are to ever find victory!

5) I’ve just come through reading Ezekiel, and though I got a lot out of Isaiah and Jeremiah, this book has been a bit more dry reading for me. Probably because it’s a lot of prophecy I feel like I can’t understand so well, and I also haven’t remembered to pray for the illumination of the Holy Spirit as much as I need (ever met the trap called “I Can Do It Myself?”). HOWEVER, this morning I read the portion about the river running out of the sanctuary and into the Dead Sea and how everything that lives in the water was able to live in that river. This passage has always been precious to me, for two reasons: 1) To me, this river symbolizes God’s wisdom. There’s always more of it coming, and the further you wade into it, the more there is. You’ll never run out. 2) In Jesus’ love, there is life. And like the river, starting out as a trickle, and then becoming a full flood with all kinds of life in it, so His love brings all kinds of life to our souls.

Now, I may be terrible at allegory, but these are things my heart is mulling over right now.

What have you been blessed with in this past week?